This article was published in PM World Journal’s December 2017 issue as a Featured Paper!

Abstract

Earned Value Management (EVM) is a rigorous and widely used analysis technique that provides valuable information about projects’ costs and schedules. A brief introduction is provided in this paper.

Two superficially similar projects in the Sahel are compared using EVM, and then conclusions are shared for all of the analyzed projects. EVM is used to answer the following questions:

1. How is each project progressing?
2. How significant is the under-spending?
3. Is each project using resources efficiently?
4. Is there a way to compare the projects to each other?
5. How much funding is necessary to complete each project?

KEY FINDING: If present trends continue, most Sahel projects will complete reasonably close to their original budget but take longer than planned.

KEY FINDING: Only 26 of 60 projects contained data suitable for analysis. Progress tracking systems need improvement.

KEY FINDING: EVM provides a useful way for Field Coordinators and Area Directors to determine which projects need additional focus. Dev Reps may use it to assess future investment opportunities.

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pmwj65-Dec2017-Fierbaugh-EVM-Analysis-of-Sahel-Underspending-featured-paper

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